#wingsoverdallas2018

[sentinelchicken]

Vietnam was truly a helicopter war- approximately 12,000 helicopters of all makes flew in the Vietnam War and of those that flew, 5607 were lost. ⁣ ⁣ Of the all the helicopters that served in Vietnam, 6987 were Bell UH-1 Iroquois “Hueys”- and 3304 of them were lost in the war. To put that number in perspective, Bell produced 10,005 UH-1s from 1957 to 1975. Of those produced, the lion’s share went to the US Army, 9216 airframes. Just over one out of every three Hueys delivered to the US Army were lost in Vietnam! ⁣ ⁣ For comparison, 40% of all B-17s produced were lost in the Second World War. ⁣ ⁣ 1151 Huey pilots were killed in action in Vietnam. That’s just a bit over 50% of all helicopter pilots killed in action in Vietnam. Non pilot Huey crew killed action (door gunners, etc) was 1231, again, this nearly half of all non-pilot helicopter crews killed in action in Vietnam. ⁣ ⁣ It’s very possible that no other aircraft in history has flown more combat flight time than the Bell UH-1- the Army’s Huey fleet from 1966 to 1975 flew 10.6 million flight hours in Vietnam. ⁣ ⁣ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Bell #UH1 #Iroquois #Huey #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2SyeTlBdRc/?igshid=7p3gs3h6q8m7

[sentinelchicken]

The B-17G “Texas Raiders” on its bombing run! Well, sort of. You get the idea. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ During the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany, most B-17 Flying Fortress missions were flown from 25,000-30,000 feet, but if the target was weakly defended by flak, the bombing missions could take place at considerably lower altitudes on the order of 15,000 feet.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Bombing accuracy tailed off with increasing altitude as did flak accuracy, for that matter. From the IP (Initial Point) where the bombing run started, to the actual bomb drop point was about 10 miles and took about 30 seconds to traverse while the bombardier took control of the aircraft via the Norden bombsight. It was an agonizingly long 30 seconds to fly straight and level to the bomb drop point! ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ USAAF planners were not biased by notions of the accuracy of high altitude daylight bombing. Data from training and ongoing missions showed that a bomber at 20,000 feet at a 1.2% chance of hitting a 100x100 foot square target zone. That meant you needed just over 200 bombers to have a 90% chance of destroying that target. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ The standard 500 lb bomb had a lethal radius of under 90 feet and it dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet across. As a result, the need for 1000-plane bombing missions against key targets becomes pretty obvious!⠀ ⠀ ⠀ It’s been said that “amateurs study tactics, professionals study logistics.” A typical Eighth Air Force B-17 bombing mission used the same amount of aviation fuel as what Nazi Germany could produce in a single month for the Luftwaffe. And in 1944-1945, there were some days where there were several such missions mounted by both the Eighth Air Force in the UK and the Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 ⠀ ⠀ #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero #AvgeekNation (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B72IIWmhFlW/?igshid=5bfp9pabdlgm

[sentinelchicken]

The B-17G “Texas Raiders” on its bombing run! Well, sort of. You get the idea. ⠀ ⠀ During the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany, most B-17 Flying Fortress missions were flown from 25,000-30,000 feet, but if the target was weakly defended by flak, the bombing missions could take place at considerably lower altitudes on the order of 15,000 feet. Bombing accuracy tailed off with increasing altitude as did flak accuracy, for that matter. ⠀ ⠀ Interestingly in the Pacific Theater, most B-17 missions were flown from medium altitude and the B-17s were even trialed in low altitude skip-bombing, but that was a mission better suited to medium bombers like the B-25 Mitchell or A-20 Havoc that were more maneuverable at low level.⠀ ⠀ USAAF planners were not biased by notions of the accuracy of high altitude daylight bombing. Data from training and ongoing missions showed that a bomber at 20,000 feet at a 1.2% chance of hitting a 100x100 foot square target zone. That meant you needed just over 200 bombers to have a 90% chance of destroying that target. The standard 500 lb bomb had a lethal radius of under 90 feet and it dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet across. As a result, the need for 1000-plane bombing missions against key targets becomes pretty obvious!⠀ ⠀ The B-17 did have fairly respectable high altitude performance thanks to a lightly loaded wing. Postwar, some B-17 target drones were flown to 40,000 feet and one Boeing test crew took a B-17 to just over 43,000 feet, setting an altitude record for four-engined piston aircraft. ⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4v7nb-hZYR/?igshid=1e57rs1eq0gyp

[sentinelchicken]

Only the B-52 Stratofortress has had a longer career as a bomber with USAF than the Douglas A-26/B-26 Invader. Introduced in 1944 as an attack bomber to replace the Douglas A-20 Havoc, the first A-26s went into action in June 1944-September 1944. ⠀ ⠀ Redesignated B-26 after the war, the Invaders were one of the first aircraft in action over Korea and carried out the first bomber mission against targets in North Korea in June 1950. Invaders also flew the last combat mission of the Korean War, dropping bombs just minutes before the Armistice went into effect. ⠀ ⠀ The Invaders were back in action again in 1960, this time in Southeast Asia. Structural fatigue issues led On-Mark Engineering to rebuild 40 Invaders to the Counter-Invader standard to fly special operations missions in Vietnam. The aircraft were redesignated back to A-26 in acknowledgement of Thai political sensitivities. The Counter-Invaders flew interdiction missions along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The last Invaders were retired from the USAF in 1972 which were the last examples serving with the Air National Guard special operations units. That’s nearly 30 years of service with the USAF. Not bad for a WW2-era bomber! ⠀ ⠀ The B-52 didn’t break the Invader’s service record until 1983.⠀ ⠀ Of the forty A-26 Counter-Invaders rebuilt for service in Vietnam, six survive. Five are in museums. "Special Kay" here is the only one flying, restored by a warbird group at Fort Worth Meacham Field. "Special Kay" is the last of the forty Invaders that were rebuilt and upgraded by On Mark Engineering. They did an impressive job with the restoration and it's a fitting flying memorial to the secret missions flown by the Air Commando Squadrons over Laos and the Ho Chi Minh Trail.⠀ ⠀ November Aviation Photo Challenge | @kjdphoto1971 | #1119planes | “Bomber" | Day 12⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Douglas #B26 #A26 #Invader #CounterInvader #SpecialKay #CommemorativeAirForce #USAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4x9IjsBU7g/?igshid=13rkf6m2qa314

[sentinelchicken]

This week is the 75th anniversary of the Operation Overlord, the landings at Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944. This particular Douglas C-47 Skytrain (the RAF called them Dakotas, so the names are pretty much interchangeable these days) is probably the most famous and historic aircraft on the warbird air show circuit today. This particular aircraft named "That's All Brother" was flown by Lt. Col. John Donalson, commander of the 438th Troop Carrier Group, as the lead aircraft of an 800-aircraft formation that air dropped the 101st Airborne Division inland from Utah Beach in the middle of the night on 6 June 1944 before the main invasion force landed on the beaches at 0630. "That's All Brother" also flew paradrop missions in Operation Market Garden (invasion of the Netherlands), Operation Anvil/Dragoon (invasion of southern France) as well as resupply drops during the Battle of the Bulge. Sold on the civilian market after the war, it changes hands several times before ending up in a Wisconsin scrapyard where the Basler company planned to rebuild the aircraft into a modern turboprop, unaware of its historical significance. That changed when USAF historians who were researching Lt. Col John Donalson's service history inquired if Basler had come across 42-92847, the serial number of "That's All Brother". Basler was surprised to have actually had the aircraft and a crowdfunding campaign allowed the Commemorative Air Force to buy the aircraft in 2015 and have Basler restore it to its original flying condition and in the markings it wore on D-Day. It's a spectacular aircraft to see flying again in person! #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Douglas #C47 #Dakota #Skytrain #ThatsAllBrother #CommemorativeAirForce #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #DDay75 (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/ByWmfYwhjhM/?igshid=mctg4fkx1xsf

[sentinelchicken]

The Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress “Texas Raiders” makes an overhead pass, showing off its Bendix-built chin turret under the nose nicely. Generally considered the definitive variant of the B-17 Flying Fortress, much of the improvements in the B-17G variant stemmed from the YB-40 variant of the Flying Fortress which was conceived as an heavily armed escort “gunship” that traded bombs for more guns. Only a small number of the gunships were built and only 48 missions were flown, the last five missions the YB-40 was used in pairs in the lead formation to protect the mission commander. The heavy weight of the guns proved impractical as the YB-40 struggled to keep up with stock B-17s that had dropped their bombs. The chin turret on the YB-40 as well as using offset waist gun positions to give the waist gunners more room were some of the features from the YB-40 program that were incorporated into the B-17G. Luftwaffe tactics started to involve head on attacks on bomber formations in an attempt to incapacitate the flight crew and the chin turret made those head on attacks much more costly for the defending fighter aircraft. In fact, the chin turret was so desired in the skies over Nazi Europe that the last 86 B-17Fs built got the chin turret- 3,405 B-17Fs were built, only the last 86 had the G’s chin turret. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #blackandwhitephotography #blackandwhitephoto #blackandwhite #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/sentinelchicken/p/Buh_QH6FYJK/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1ojkp2eo7my4n

[sentinelchicken]

An enlarged and more powerful evolution of the Bell P-39 Airacobra, the P-63 King Cobra is the only mass produced American fighter aircraft of the Second World War to never see operational combat service with any branch of the US armed forces. The King Cobra was used for training by the USAAF, but nearly three-quarters of the King Cobra production went to the Soviet Union as Lend-Lease support. The P-63 King Cobra had the misfortune of being developed at the same time as upgraded versions of the P-51 Mustang which proved to have better all around performance than the King Cobra and was more suited to the mission demands of the USAAF, namely long range. The King Cobra’s biggest weakness was its limited range, but this was not an issue for the Red Air Force who operated from air strips close to the front lines in the battles on the Eastern Front against Germany. Like its P-39 predecessor, the P-63 King Cobra had the mid-mounted engine- it was felt that putting the engine near the aircraft’s center of gravity made it more maneuverable and it allowed for heavy armament to be fitted to the nose which included a 37mm cannon. It also had the unique “car” entry doors to the cockpit. This made bailing out tricky, so the doors were often rigged to be jettisonable in a bail out situation. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Bell #P63 #KingCobra #CommemorativeAirForce #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/sentinelchicken/p/BwvVAqPF9Sb/?igshid=1v4cz4nu8ljy2

[sentinelchicken]

Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat of the Commemorative Air Force painted up as "Minsi III", the aircraft of Medal of Honor recipient David McCampbell, the highest scoring ace of the US Navy with 34 victories, the third highest scoring American ace of the Second World War, the highest scoring American ace to survive the Second World War, and he also set an American combat record with the most victories in a single day, shooting down nine Japanese aircraft at the start of the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944 (the historical world record is a Luftwaffe pilot, Hans-Joachim Marseille who shot down 17 in a single day in North Africa in 1942). On that epic mission in 1944, David McCampbell and his wingman boldly attacked a Japanese force of 60 aircraft. His wingman shot down six aircraft. He was the commander of Carrier Air Group 15 on the USS Essex at the time and he had to land on the carrier USS Langley instead because the Essex's deck was fouled up. He landed on fumes and there were only two rounds left for the six 50-caliber machine guns of his Hellcat. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Grumman #F6F #Hellcat #CommemorativeAirForce #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero https://www.instagram.com/sentinelchicken/p/Bwk_k-AF7gX/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=rzu73ehi7gfa

[sentinelchicken]

Caught this moment at Warbirds Over Dallas 2018 this past October as this F6F Hellcat pilot was getting his bird ready for the flying display later in the morning. The Grumman F6F Hellcat was the US Navy's dominant fighter of the Second World War. The aircraft was designed to be superior to the legendary Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter that had dominated the skies of the Pacific for the first half of the war. 75% of the Navy's aerial victories in the Pacific were by F6F Hellcats and the war ended with 305 Hellcat aces. There are only six airworthy F6F Hellcat fighters in the world today, all of them based here in the United States. It was pretty neat to get to walk amongst the warbirds on the ramp with my youngest son early in the morning as they were all getting preflighted for air show. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Grumman #F6F #Hellcat #CommemorativeAirForce #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/sentinelchicken/p/Bucxx2QlVF3/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=aflsagkeblty

[sentinelchicken]

This is "Diamond Lil", a Consolidated B-24A Liberator and only one of two airworthy B-24s in the world- along with the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, the B-24 Liberator was instrumental in the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany during the Second World War. Approximately 18,500 B-24s were built in the Second World War and it holds the titles of the most produced bomber in history, the most produced four engined aircraft in history, and the most produced American combat aircraft in history. Five plants across the United States built the Liberator with half of them being built by Ford Motor Company at a plant in Willow Run, Michigan. Working two 9-hour shifts, the Ford Willow Run plant at the height of wartime production was producing a B-24 bomber *every* 63 minutes! The large Lockheed plant in Fort Worth where the F-16 and the F-35 are built was originally built during World War II for B-24 production. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Consolidated #B24 #Liberator #DiamondLil #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #Avgeekery #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/BqY1nNbF1bo/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=gfak084c57kd

[sentinelchicken]

“Texas Raiders”, a Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress, gets airborne for its flying display at Dallas Executive Airport (the former Redbird Airport). This particular B-17G was built in 1944 by Douglas Aircraft in Long Beach. That’s right- Douglas. The pressing need for B-17 Flying Fortresses for the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany led to two other companies assisting the war effort to build B-17s- besides Boeing, there was Lockheed’s Vega Division in Burbank and Douglas’s Long Beach Division. The first variant built by all three companies was the B-17F with Douglas building 605 and Lockheed building 500. The improved B-17G was introduced on the production line in July 1943. Douglas would build 2395 G models and Lockheed built 2250. “Texas Raiders” was one of the last 20 B-17Gs built at Long Beach. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #Avgeekery #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/BpxN_cjlBqx/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=on1wu3hvldjp

[sentinelchicken]

Member of the Liberty Jump Team prepares for departure on a C-47 wearing D-Day markings at a local air show. From the website for the Liberty Jump Team: "Liberty Jump Team was organized and incorporated as a professional Airborne Demonstration Team in September of 2006. Liberty Jump Team now has a solid professional membership of more than 70 members, including both parachutists and ground crew. The founding members had a vision, to have a team of commemorative jumpers, who would honor not only the brave men and women of World War II, but veterans of all conflicts, by performing military static line parachute operations. Liberty Jump Team wanted to be a team that could professionally jump into the most difficult of drop zones with accuracy and safety. Liberty Jump Team conducts an annual airborne school to teach new jumpers the skills and accuracy needed to jump safely, and conduct a refresher course for active-duty or retired military members that have not jumped in several years. Our airborne instructors are all former military airborne members who have the qualifications and professionalism to safely instruct the attendees. All parachutists must complete a rigorous and physically demanding school as well as a minimum number of qualifying jumps to be able to perform with the team. After successful completion of the course, moving forward and actively jumping with the team requires the individual to provide their own equipment." #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Douglas #C47 #Dakota #Skytrain #CommemorativeAirForce #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero #AvGeekNation #DDay75 #LibertyJumpTeam (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0ujkShBoku/?igshid=1khkirxpramkl